"Dad, is it coming again?"
Holding a long knife, Aili rushed to the deck. Her shy demeanor from before was replaced with a sharp gaze, intensely scanning the sea surface for a full minute.
"Roar———!"
With a piercing roar, a massive sea king-like creature burst out of the water, flipping the entire pirate ship into the air.
Vivian, who had just stepped onto the deck, was stunned. He quickly grabbed the mast with both hands, spinning several times in the air to avoid falling into the sea.
Despite this, apart from him and a few others like Aili, a large number of Whitebeard Pirates fell into the sea, scattered by the giant beast.
"Agatha, stop!" Aili clung to the railing, shouting loudly, "Agatha, Captain Thatch is dead, killed by Teach. I've told you this already. He won't come back!"
"Roar———!"
As if understanding Aili's words, the beast called Agatha roared again.
This time, it seemed to be completely enraged, lunging forward and causing waves that submerged the people on the beach.
"Aili, stop provoking it! If this continues, we'll be in big trouble. Without Captain Marco, we can't stop it!"
Hodman, struggling to swim back to the ship, shouted.
"But…"
Aili wiped the tears from her eyes, "How many times has this happened? It has to accept the truth eventually!"
"Agatha…" Hodman looked at the now completely berserk sea beast, his face showing pain and struggle.
Meanwhile…
[Option 1: Stop Agatha from attacking the town. (Reward: Mastery of Animal Language)]
[Option 2: Take advantage of the chaos to steal a small boat and escape. (Reward: Random Basic Attribute +1)]
"Mastery of Animal Language?" Vivian raised an eyebrow.
Does this mean understanding all animal languages?
That sounds pretty useful…
And judging by the reward, it shouldn't be too difficult to handle.
It's just a sea beast, right?
Although it's a bit large, as long as its defense isn't too extraordinary, like being covered in Armament Haki, even if it's as hard as steel, Vivian could still turn it into a pile of mush.
After all, his Blood Demon is as good as a Great Grade Sword…
While contemplating, cries for help from civilians on the shore reached his ears.
"Help!"
Seeing the sea beast charging towards the island, its massive body about to crush the crowd, Vivian couldn't hold back any longer. He took out his Blood Demon from the universal capsule and, with a flash of lightning, appeared on the beach.
Zzz———!
The overwhelming electric light instantly covered the sea beast's massive body. As time passed, a faint smell of cooked meat wafted through the air.
[You chose Option 1]
[Next Task: Evacuate the civilians and defeat the berserk Agatha. (Current Stage: Second)]
"Quick! Leave here!" Vivian shouted.
The next second, the civilians, just recovering from their terror, ran towards the town center.
On the other side…
"That guy…" Hodman was stunned.
Seeing the handsome young man he had considered as a son-in-law displaying such powerful combat skills, Hodman was speechless, his mouth wide enough to fit a cannonball.
Similarly, Aili stared blankly at Vivian's electrifyingly handsome back, feeling a surge of admiration.
"Should we call the other division commanders?" a pirate asked.
"I don't think that's necessary."
Hodman waved his hand. "The captains are currently discussing the details of rescuing Ace with the old man. There's no need to bother them with such a small matter."
"Then..."
"Having my son-in-law here is enough."
Hodman said, lighting a cigarette and taking a proud puff.
Indeed, the people I, Hodman, have taken a liking to are truly exceptional.
Back then, even before Marco became the captain of the first squad, he could already see the extraordinary qualities in him. Years later, Marco still holds a position in the first squad, which is a testament to his keen eye for talent.
If only Marco had taken a liking to his daughter back then, his status might have been even higher now.
He thought to himself.
However, if Aili knew that her father had wanted to marry her off to Marco, who was almost thirty when she was only four, she would probably draw her sword and teach Hodman the true meaning of "fatherly love."
The scene shifts back to the island.
Seeing the civilians evacuating from the beach, Vivian also led the sea beast to a location far from the edge of the town. He continuously struck the sea beast with Distant Thunder while quickly retreating, until he reached the edge of a cliff. The sea beast, seeing that Vivian had nowhere to retreat, let out a roar and charged forward.
The impact was as powerful as dozens of cannons firing simultaneously. The mountain collapsed under the sea beast's charge, and a large number of rocks rolled down like dense raindrops, covering Vivian completely.
Aili, who was watching the battle, was almost scared to death, her heart nearly jumping out of her throat.
Standing beside her, Hodman was even more worried.
He estimated that if his son-in-law got injured, how would he marry his daughter?
Would he still be able to have grandchildren?
He hoped to have at least one grandson and one granddaughter within three years of their marriage.
He worried in his heart.
Soon, Vivian, covered by the falling rocks, furiously swung the Blood Demon in his hand, swiftly chopping the stones above him into fragments.
"Phew~~"
He took a deep breath, and a faint white mist emerged from his mouth.
"Thunder Breath: Third Form..."
"Thunder Swarm!"
His body spun rapidly, and a whirlpool-like wave of electricity instantly surrounded the sea beast's head.
Accompanied by crackling sounds, the sea beast finally couldn't withstand Vivian's electric shock and let out a mournful cry, falling straight back into the sea.
"Agatha!" Aili exclaimed and rushed forward to check on the sea beast's condition.
However, Vivian, without even turning his head, took out another cigar, put it in his mouth, and calmly said, "Don't worry, I held back with that strike. It will only suffer minor injuries and won't die."
[Task: Evacuate civilians and defeat the enraged Agatha. (Completed)]
[Trigger follow-up task: Use all your strength to spar with Marco, the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates' first squad. (Currently in the third round)]
The prompt appeared in Vivian's vision.
His expression immediately stiffened, and the cigar in his mouth fell to the ground.
"Wh-what the..."
Spar with Marco?
Are you kidding me, system?
The prompt disappeared.
And in the next second, Marco emerged from behind a large tree, his hands in his pockets, looking very serious as he walked towards Vivian.